Kanban

Kanban is a method for managing knowledge work with an emphasis on just-in-

time delivery while not overloading the team members. In this approach, the
process, from definition of a task to its delivery to the customer, is displayed for
participants to see and team members pull work from a queue.
Kanban in the context of software development can mean a visual process
management system that tells what to produce, when to produce it, and how much
to produce inspired by the Toyota Production System

and Lean manufacturing.

The Kanban method
The name 'Kanban' originates from Japanese, and translates roughly as
"signboard" or "billboard". It was formulated by David J. Anderson as an approach
to incremental, evolutionary process and systems change for organizations. It uses
a work-in-progress limited pull system as the core mechanism to expose system
operation (or process) problems and stimulate collaboration to continuously
improve the system. It is rooted in four basic principles:
Start with what you do now
The Kanban method does not prescribe a specific set of roles or process steps.
The Kanban method starts with the roles and processes you have and stimulates
continuous, incremental and evolutionary changes to your system. The Kanban
method is a change management method.
Agree to pursue incremental, evolutionary change
The organization (or team) must agree that continuous, incremental and
evolutionary change is the way to make system improvements and make them
stick. Sweeping changes may seem more effective but have a higher failure rate
due to resistance and fear in the organization. The Kanban method encourages
continuous small incremental and evolutionary changes to your current system.
Respect the current process, roles, responsibilities and titles
It is likely that the organization currently has some elements that work acceptably
and are worth preserving. The Kanban method seeks to drive out fear in order to
facilitate future change. It attempts to eliminate initial fears by agreeing to respect
current roles, responsibilities and job titles with the goal of gaining broader support.


Leadership at all levels
Acts of leadership at all levels in the organization, from individual contributors to
senior management, are encouraged.


Kaizen
Kaizen, Japanese for "improvement" or "self-changing for the best of all", refers to
philosophy or practices that focus up on continuous improvement of processes in
manufacturing, engineering, business management or any process. It has been
applied in healthcare, psychotherapy,
[2]
life-coaching, government, banking, and
other industries. When used in the business sense and applied to the workplace,
kaizen refers to activities that continually improve all functions, and involves all
employees from the CEO to the assembly line workers. It also applies to
processes, such as purchasing and logistics, that cross organizational boundaries
into the supply chain. By improving standardized activities and processes, kaizen
aims to eliminate waste (see lean manufacturing). Kaizen was first implemented in
several Japanese businesses after the Second World War, influenced in part by
American business and quality management teachers who visited the country. It
has since spread throughout the world and is now being implemented in
environments outside of business and productivity.



Poka Yoke
Poka-yoke is a Japanese term that means "mistake-proofing". A poka-yoke is any
mechanism in a lean manufacturing process that helps an equipment operator
avoid (yokeru) mistakes (poka). Its purpose is to eliminate product defects by
preventing, correcting, or drawing attention to human errors as they occur. The
concept was formalised, and the term adopted, byShigeo Shingo as part of
the Toyota Production System. It was originally described as baka-yoke, but as this
means "fool-proofing" (or "idiot-proofing") the name was changed to the
milder poka-yoke.